Neptune hands out multi-year deal for drilling activities

Oil and gas player Neptune Energy has awarded a long-term contract for drilling activities on the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS) to Tenaris, a manufacturer of pipes and related services.

Neptune Energy disclosed on Tuesday, 16 May 2023, that a five-year contract with two two-year extension options was given to Tenaris for the provision of equipment and services to support drilling activities offshore Norway. The deal came into effect in mid-April 2023.

Kjell-Petter Schou Andreassen, Neptune’s Head of Supply Chain Management & Logistics in Norway, remarked: “The new contract strengthens our collaboration with Tenaris which has supported our strong operational and safety performance across all of our drilling activities.”

The contract, which amounts to more than $100 million, covers the manufacture, transport, handling and repair of a broad range of casing materials used in offshore drilling activities. The company explains that this will initially include support for one exploration well and one appraisal well in its operated Gjøa area in the Norwegian North Sea this year.

Christer Andersen, Tenaris’ Country Manager in Norway, commented: “We look forward to continuing to add value to Neptune`s operations in the years to come with our global industrial footprint, state-of-the-art technology and our advanced, low-carbon product portfolio.”

Located in the northern part of the North Sea, the Gjøa field was discovered in 1989 by Statoil (current Equinor). The operatorship was transferred to Neptune when production started in 2010. The semi-submersible Gjøa production unit, jointly developed with nearby Vega fields, has full processing and export capabilities and is electrified with renewable power from shore.

This platform has been designed to act as an area hub. While the oil is exported to the Mongstad crude oil terminal on the west coast of Norway, the gas is exported through the FLAGS pipeline to the St. Fergus Gas Terminal in Scotland. The Wintershall Dea-operated Nova field, which is tied back to the Gjøa platform, started production in 3Q 2022.

Regarding Neptune’s recent activities in Norway, the company brought on stream an oil and gas field in the Norwegian Sea at the end of April 2023. This field has been tied back to the Equinor-operated Njord A platform.

Elsewhere, the firm entered into a multi-year partnership agreement with WFR Oilfield Services for the provision of a wide range of well testing services in the Dutch sector of the North Sea.